‘Very Own’ Opens at Culture Hub

Opening Night

Very Own was officially opened at Culture Hub on Saturday night. The exhibition features the work of Duncan Macfarlane, Harry Triglone and Gareth Budge. The trio grew up surfing together on the Coffs Coast, before carving out their own successful creative careers further abroad. Diverse in style and technique, their artistic works carry the common thread of laid-back fun, exploration and surfing.

It was also a chance to say thank you and farewell to the fabulous Ashleigh Frost. Ash was the Programs Facilitator at Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery and facilitated/curated each show exhibited at Culture Hub. She’s heading west for a new position now – we’ll miss you, Ash!

Goodbye Culture Hub

What do you get when you combine a gallery, a museum, a library and a little magic in your favourite shopping centre? You get Culture Hub. But it wasn’t your usual pop-up arts space. Culture Hub was interactive, welcoming and responsive to feedback.

Culture Hub opened its doors in October 2020. It was presented by the Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery alongside Coffs Harbour Libraries & Museum in association with Coffs Central. It combined arts, community and culture for Coffs Harbour and the wider region. Culture Hub was space where everyone was able to learn about and enjoy the incredible talent from this region and beyond. It was a space where you could see artwork, read books, share histories and hear stories. And it was a space that valued all art – from drawings by local school kids to the Archibald Prize exhibition.

Six Extraordinary Shows

Culture Hub’s first exhibition was a showcase of the extraordinary works made by local primary school children in response to the 2019/2020 summer bushfires. The works sat alongside community responses to the bushfires with items from our Museum, and stories from our Libraries. 

Eugenia Lim’s exhibition, The Ambassador was next followed by The 2019 Archibald Prize. From there it was Jagun Yamarr and the Sikh Museum Takeover: From Early Settlers to Bridal Glamour. Very Own rounds out Culture Hub’s extraordinary offerings. It’s on show until July 3. 

Photos by @lyssphotostoies Video by @the.videoagency